Otis Elementary Groundbreaking Set for September 28
AUSD breaks ground on the new Fillmore Street campus while kids spend two years at the old Lum school site.
By The Alameda Pulse
AUSD is breaking ground on the new Otis Elementary School campus in Alameda, CA on Monday, Sept. 28, 2026, the ceremonial start of a rebuild that'll keep Otis kids learning out of 29 portable classrooms at the old Lum school site for the next two years.
- Where: The new campus goes up at the current Otis Elementary site, near Fillmore and High streets. The temporary campus is at the former Lum Elementary site, 1801 Sandcreek Road.
- When: The groundbreaking is Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. Demolition starts this summer, construction begins this fall, and the new campus is set to open in summer 2028.
- Who decided: AUSD's Board of Education approved the design on Sept. 24, 2024, after six meetings with the site design team.
- How it's funded: The project runs through Measure B, the district's school construction bond.
- What's next: The project still needs sign off from state reviewers before crews can start moving dirt.
When is the Otis Elementary groundbreaking?
It's set for Monday, Sept. 28, 2026, according to AUSD's Otis Elementary construction project page. That date marks the start of work on a new administrative building and media center, a two-story classroom building, and an academic quad. The existing Multi-Purpose Room and the newer classroom building along High Street aren't going anywhere. They're staying put while the rest of campus gets rebuilt around them.
Where will Otis students go during construction?
They'll spend the 2026-27 and 2027-28 school years at a temporary campus on the former Lum Elementary School site, 1801 Sandcreek Road. That's 29 portable classroom buildings, each with heating, air conditioning and MERV-13 air filters. There's perimeter fencing, blacktop and grass fields, and bike racks, so it's a real campus, just not a permanent one.
What is Otis Elementary actually getting?
The new buildings bring better accessibility, new perimeter fencing, fresh shade and playground structures, and freshly striped blacktop. AUSD's Board of Education signed off on the design in September 2024, after six meetings with the site design team. Projects like this don't move fast. Environmental consultants spent months checking the site for old contamination before anyone could even think about breaking ground.
What happens next
Crews plan to move kids into the temporary campus this summer, then start tearing down the old building soon after. Construction is supposed to start this fall, but AUSD says the timeline could still shift depending on approvals from state reviewers. If it stays on schedule, the new Otis Elementary campus opens in summer 2028, and Monday's ceremony is where that clock starts. For more on what's happening with Alameda's other school rebuilds, see our education coverage, and check Alameda's upcoming events for what else is going on around town this fall.
